Why does my senior dog seem hungrier than ever?

A recent switch to a lower calorie senior formula can genuinely leave a dog feeling hungrier at the same volume of food, since the stomach fills up the same way but fewer calories are actually delivered per meal overall. Similarly, a dog that has become somewhat less efficient at absorbing nutrients from food with age might show increased hunger even on a diet that previously satisfied it comfortably for years.

Several conditions more common in senior dogs can cause a genuine increase in appetite, sometimes alongside other changes like weight loss despite eating more, increased thirst, or noticeable changes in energy level. This combination of increased hunger with other simultaneous changes is considerably more concerning than increased hunger appearing entirely on its own with nothing else different.

Note whether increased hunger has appeared alongside any weight change, either gain or unexpected loss, changes in thirst or urination, or shifts in energy and general behavior. A sudden, marked increase in appetite, particularly combined with any of these other changes, is worth a proper vet visit rather than simply feeding more to satisfy the apparent hunger each time.

Keeping a simple written log of your dog's daily appetite, weight, and any other changes over a couple of weeks gives your vet far more useful, concrete information to work from than a general impression alone, and often speeds up reaching a clear answer.